The year 1842 saw the publication of Lays of Ancient Rome, a collection of poems by Thomas Macaulay. The best known of these poems/lays is "Horatius," about three men -- with Horatius as their captain, in the center, holding off the massed Etruscan army on a bridge just wide enough for --- three men. Death is near certain for each of the three as they take up their position. But Horatius encourages his comrades at either arm, and himself, with these famous words, "For how can man die better than facing fearful odds For the ashes of his father and the temples of his gods?" -------------------------------- I was thinking of these words of late when I was scratching a canine companion of mine on the back of her neck. I thought that maybe they could be reworked ever-so slightly in a way more suitable to my quiet life. So, let us try this. For where can dog lie better than on her family's porch With the scratches of her father, and the nearby heater's scorch...